July 30, 2018

July 29, 2018

One of the first things I checked this morning ~ UNM learn platform to see if my grades are in. Nope. I know it's too early, but hope springs eternal, ya know?

While visiting my new Doc 6 months ago, I asked her about the new shingles vaccine, which she recommended we get. So, we had the first one in April, and were due for the second part in July. Unfortunately the second part of the vaccine is in very short supply, and there was nothing for it but to put our names on the list to be notified when available ~ which happened yesterday. They had 6 vaccines left, so we took off after dinner to get ours. Sure does make your arm sore.... Before the list, I had asked a pharmacist at the store about it, and what would happen if we weren't able to get the second one within 6 months, and she said not to worry ~ she didn't think they were that effective. But I discounted her theory and went with the Doc's advise, which was to do it. It decreases the percentage of coming down with shingles, which is no laughing matter. I do value the opinion of a pharmacist, so I was surprised at hers. Perhaps she was simply trying to reduce my concerns. I hope the damned thing works!

July 28, 2018

No, I didn't take this photo, it was on the Memories & Photos of New Mexico FB page

It's probably a time lapse photo, right?

Leakage, we had some interesting drips and drops around those damned windows again last night. We have always had leaks around them, but Romeo is going to tar around the fireplace flue again. I think he's spot on with predicting that's where the leak occurred last night. So, a pile of towels on the window sills and on the floor to catch the splashes. Grrrr. On the plus side, if you want to see the Rio Grande in Abq with more than knee deep water in it, today's your day. Apparently it's even running down in Socorro. At any rate, the air is fresh, clean and cool this morning, so I opened up the windows. Then Romeo was vacuuming and the stink from that bag ruined the moment. I guess it's time to change the bag again.

I AM DONE with Intercultural Communications. And what a finish.......after racquetball yesterday, a little lunch and a shower, I worked from 2pm to 8pm. I had to hunt down the gadget Romeo bought to cool the computer. I had the actual cooling pad, but couldn't find the cord that makes the fan run. After it was located, we put a label on that sucker. Have you ever had an adapter or cord that you couldn't figure out what it belongs to? Yep. Well, the laptop almost burst into flame (kidding) but I finally submitted my final paper. Now to wait and see.

Romeo is so sweet ~ he suggested I go shopping today, but I've seen the downstairs bathroom and I think I better clean house today.

July 27, 2018

My class is nearly over. I have an A so far, but I haven't turned in the final research paper yet. We are to write on an ongoing or longstanding intercultural conflict. For some reason I latched onto the conflict over the Temple Mount. I think I have 2 1/2 pages done and 3 1/2 to do today. Due by midnight. Don't plan to be up anywhere near that late finishing it up, though. Midnight is waaaay past my bedtime, folks, haha.

2 1/2 years to go.....

When you look at that face (and there are tons of really ugly pictures of him on google, people), what do you see? I'm thinking to myself, the man doesn't really know how to smile. If he did, there wouldn't be so many goofy looking smiles on google. I wonder if he's truly ever been happy. Not that I care, but if he had a wonderful life he'd be able to crack a genuine smile now and again, eh?

We're having a great start to monsoon season, we really need the rain. We had a great storm last night, but of course, I don't live in an area subject to flash flooding. My favorite time to pull weeds? Right after it rains. Got rid of a bunch of milk weeds this morning. Least favorite time to pick up dog poo? Right after it rains. Phew.

And finally, a discovery of ancient oats on a pestle (grinding stone) makes the case for my remarks about the ancient bread that was recently discovered in Jordan.

July 24, 2018

I'm only a little ahead of the game ~ our final is tomorrow. I spent my lunch time reviewing the first 6 chapters, the rest I just read last week. I could spend tonight writing a bit on my paper. I should be writing on my paper. I know I will kick myself on Thursday afternoon if I don't, but I just can't bring myself to do it. It takes me so long to get into the groove of writing, that by the time I reach that point it'll be bedtime. So, meh.

Yeah, this is 14,000 year old bread.

Have you heard of the "discovery" of the world's oldest bread in Jordan? Oh, yeah it's a big deal, because it predates agriculture. It drives me nuts. Because the assumption is that there was no bread before agriculture? Really? Humans have been hunting and GATHERING. Gathering means seeds, rices, and grains. What do you think they did with them? Yep. Flatbread. Bread is the staff of life, ya know. I think agriculture came about because people wanted more bread......and beer. I recall seeing a you tube video that proposed the history of beer, but I can't find it. However, there's a nice short article here from Smithsonian magazine.

Well, it looks like I still have time to at least read some stuff I plan to put into the paper.

July 23, 2018

Ah, I can almost smell the green chile roasting. In a month or so we will be heading to Corralles to purchase our green chile for the year. After it cools down from roasting, we bag it up and put it in the freezer. Yummmm

Godless, a limited series on Netflix

I just finished watching Godless, a western produced by Netflix starring Michelle Dockery from Downtown Abbey fame, and Jeff Daniels as an interesting villain. I recommended it, especially if you are interested in New Mexico landscapes, westerns, lots of shoot outs, and cowboy heroes. I hope they produce season 2, although they wrap up the story nicely in the final episode.

I have already completed Thursday's assignment, and plan to review for the exam tomorrow. Looks like it will be a marathon to finish the research paper for Friday. Good thing I have until midnight! I just read today that the final will be comprehensive ~ making me apprehensive (haha) as I haven't had many comprehensive finals. Figures that we would have one in this class, which is undoubtedly one of the most challenging classes I've had ~ not in terms of content, but in the sheer amount of work required to complete it in a very short amount of time. Right now I have a 96. We'll see how it is after the final. Then I can calculate how much effort I have to put into the paper to pass. :-)

July 20, 2018

Somehow I have survived the last 21 days of class, and just one more to go. One more chapter, a few more video lectures, a final exam on Wednesday and my 6-8 page final paper due in one week. Today I realized that this will be my last summer class, and no one is happier about that than me. Oh, wait, Romeo might be happy too. Then instead of holed up in my office we could actually spend our evenings together. Or maybe plan a weekend trip.

I really don't understand why UNM (and probably many other colleges) even have summer classes. It's really stupid to cram a 16 week course into 4 weeks of total craziness. There is no reason to restrict summer classes to 4 weeks. The spring semester ends in early May. We could have taken a leisurely 8 weeks and finished up 3 weeks before fall classes start. It's a mystery.....

Although we had some nice rain, it has become unbearably hot again. The humidity is up because of the rain, which just makes it worse. I miss the summers we had here when we first moved here 20+ years ago, where we rarely had 100 degree days. We've had lots of those this year, and will have them again Saturday and Sunday. We're only at 99 today. Whew! I am ready for fall weather.....

Romeo reminded me that I need a new piece of luggage since our old rolling one died last year. We had it for almost 20 years, so I guess we got our moneys worth on it. Macy's had a sale I went to today, and purchased a nice one for less than $100. It is a tad bit smaller than the original one, but that's ok with me. It's lightweight too, which will be a bonus. The last one weighed in at 20 lbs, and this one is less than 9 lbs. Probably won't last as long though, although it has a 10 year "limited" warranty, which probably doesn't include the wheels. I figure those will be the first things to break.

July 15, 2018

While looking for a photo of the two of them together, I realize I need to take another one when I visit in Sept. Son #2 really hates having his photo taken, although it's not #1's favorite thing either. My youngest and I were chatting via text yesterday, and mentioned he was at a restaurant that serves a darn good carne guisada and has a reputation for hot and spicy salsa. He said his nose was running, and it was so good it made him miss New Mexico. =sigh=. I miss them both.

I have been slowing down a bit on the class, I think I've used up all my enthusiasm and now feel like I'm slogging through mud.

Sadly, Anderson is not doing well against Djokovic. I thought the game would be closer than it is. I think all the errors are a culmination of exhaustion and nerves. Of course, it's easy to criticize when you're just watching, haha. Seems I was right in predicting that Kerber would win over Williams though.

July 14, 2018

While I was watching all the blather on Wimbledon, Romeo washed the windows outside, set the sheets into the wash, and just finished replacing the faucet in the downstairs bathroom. All this activity set me into motion to get dressed (haha), slip in the contacts and begin working on my essay. All week long I thought the essay was due today, but after checking, discovered it's due tomorrow. Even if I finish it today, I won't submit it until tomorrow. It never hurts to check it after you've finished it up.

I was so sad that Nadal couldn't pull off a win against Djokovic. It was an exciting game to watch though. Sometime today ~ which I didn't realize until later that Wimbledon will go on and on all day long until the women final begins. It will be interesting to see if Kerber will win against Williams. If her game is really on, Kerber should win. Williams is gaining in the rankings, but she still has a ways to go before her game returns to her previously unbeatable level. Honestly, it was great to see other players rise in the standings while Williams was off on maternity leave. I know that a great many people dislike watching tennis because of the noises some players make as they hit the ball. I say they should just mute the tv (unless you like the commentary) and watch a game that is really entertaining. Golf? Please. It has the entertainment value of watching a slug crawl, although I should mention I don't enjoy golf. What's really funny is that my Mom likes to watch it, and she never played. Well, she says she likes to watch, but I think it's her caregiver who will watch any sport on tv ~ except tennis. Their loss, I say.

July 13, 2018

Since one of our Docs is on vacation, there is no one working today ~ each one alternates Friday's and Monday's, so this is the Doc on vacation's Friday. No one complained.....haha

I have already made the bed, tidied up the kitchen a bit, made coffee & enjoyed a lovely bowl of oatmeal with blueberries, walnuts and sweetened just a tad with a bit of maple syrup. Then had to wait 30 minutes for updates to install on my aging computer. Romeo wants me to buy a new one in December, and I suppose I should before I graduate, as college students receive a discount at Apple. The truth is I've never had to show anything more than my ID card which doesn't have an expiration date, so I probably don't need to worry about it......but still.

The tv is playing the Wimbledon semi finals with Anderson and Isner battling it out on the grassy courts of the Queens Club. It has been an extremely close game so far, each have won one set. They are very alike, tall and lanky. It'll be interesting to see the final. But later today is the match I'm wanting to see ~ Nadal and Djokovick. I hope Nadal whips his butt, Djokovick is such a whiney asshole (although a great tennis player). I will be playing some racquetball later, so I may have to watch the replay, as Romeo subscribed to the ESPN+ app so that I wouldn't miss the games.

It's been great having the ESPN+ as they have an hour long recap of the day's play, so I have been able to eat dinner while watching that and then retire to my office to write, write, write. I have been keeping up with the accelerated pace of the class. I finished reading the chapters, took the exam on Wednesday (I missed the first 3 multiple choice questions, but got all the rest and now waiting for the short answer questions to be graded), wrote the chapter reflection and the group discussion posts yesterday. All I have left to do is write the essay that is due tomorrow. Technically I am half way through, so a couple more weeks and it will be over.....

We have entered our "monsoon season" here in New Mexico, so when the conditions are right we see rain in the afternoons and evenings. We need a good season to help with the fire dangers here, but of course thunderstorms produce lightening which is a fire danger ~ ironic or contradictory or something in-between.

July 10, 2018

I am working so hard to get rid of the just under the surface frustration I have with this class.

Two weeks or so after I registered for this class I checked to see if we needed to buy or rent a book. The UNM bookstore said there were no required texts. So, stock up on ink, because I figured we'd be printing a lot (like the spring class, that was ridiculous). Four days into the class, I see that there's nothing to print out, and she keeps mentioning the book. I don't understand why she didn't send us an e-mail letting us know we will need the book. I rent it from Amazon. $21 or so. No big deal, except that I would have started reading chapters 4-7 starting on Friday. The book arrived on Saturday at about 7pm. And no, I was too tired by then to crack that sucker open.

This instructor simply made the online class available without changing anything until the class started on Monday. When I first printed the syllabus, it didn't even have her name on it. Slowly she has been "updating" it. Basically, she was likely told that most everything was ready. But it wasn't, and then I saw "Graduate Student and Instructor" under her name. Which explains a lot. Because they (grad students) go through hell, and why not drag your class through hell along with you? Yeah, why not? That's what I experienced last semester with the grad student who taught that class too. Gah.

I've already posted all the shit for this week. I'm sort of reaching my saturation point, and very nearly ready to just push it by doing the minimum amount of work. Which is stupid, because by not giving it my all it only hurts me. Gah.

One comment asked me how I have time to post. I would go crazy if I didn't write it down. So this is my therapy and stress release, since I don't have time to go to the gym. And please don't even ask me about the diet. That project is on hold ~ along with everything else until 7/27, when my last assignment is due.

July 8, 2018

I woke up with the back of my head on fire, stumbled downstairs for a couple Advil and then in my favorite, most comfortable chair to wait for it to go away. It's Sunday funday, where a my group of buddies gets together for two hours of racquetball. I had left my phone upstairs to charge on my desk, and I could hear the crickets start to go off. I really need to change that notification sound to something else......

By this time my head is feeling much better, so I stumble back upstairs (it's a talent, all this stumbling) and read the texts where one after another, everyone is backing out of playing today. One said she had too much to do today, another was at her Grandson's wedding & bowed out, another just returned from a cruise. That leaves only 3, and 2 of them prefer to play doubles. So, no game today. I was so looking forward to playing, as it's a real stress reliever, and I'm in desperate need of stress relief.

This is the list of what I need to do this week. I have watched the first 4 video lectures. I haven't read all of the readings yet. The exam that is scheduled for Wednesday isn't on the list, and the reflection papers are both due on Thursday.

I think this instructor is insane.

I can't withdraw from this class because I have a graduation schedule. If I could, I would, because I don't see having any free time (for anything) until it's over.

July 7, 2018

Although this is White Sands, New Mexico, it almost looks like a beach scene, doesn't it?

Once we hit 50 (or 45 for some) we begin our lament. Our youth is behind us. Our joints begin to ache, our hair is thinner, we have more wrinkles.

Oh, aging is a bitch! We should just end it all now! Woe is me, I'm getting OLD!!

In many cases, it seems like this lament is a way to connect with those that are of a similar age as us. It's a conversation opener. Sort of like the weather, when you get sick of complaining about that, haha. This seems true the older we are. There are even jokes about it :-)

I miss the way my body looked when I was young too. How easy it was to get back into shape after slacking off for a few weeks. These days, a two week break from the gym takes 4 weeks to recuperate from. My deep set eyes look like black holes in my head, especially if I don't get enough sleep or have a headache.

However, sometimes hearing all of this negativity about the aging process annoys me. We're alive. We can still enjoy life. We can make a difference.

Do we really expect to look like we did in our 30s when we're in our 60s? There's a term for that too. Denial.

I'm sure that the art of complaining about how old we are all getting (thats right, we're all getting older every single second) will only improve with age. Just don't expect me to listen.

July 6, 2018

My class started this Monday, and I am already cancelling stuff I had planned to do. I have at least 6 video lectures, three chapters to read, and an exam next Wednesday. Holy crap on a cracker......

It is definitely vacation season. Yesterday we had 7 people out on vacation ~ mostly because one of the Docs is out for two weeks, which is the best time to be out of the office. Even though we were "on the schedule" to work, my boss took today off, so no one is working.

I am currently sitting out on the patio, happily enjoying the deck, which is mostly finished. He still has final touches to do. I hope he doesn't lose interest in doing those, or it'll be like this for years, haha. It's really not like him to leave projects unfinished, so I'm likely fretting for no reason.

Well, I can hear those video lectures calling to me. I hope all of you have a wonderful weekend!

July 2, 2018

For $9.99 ~ OK, lets just say 10 bucks right? I am an avid reader. I read every.single.day. Usually this is how I end my day, for 30 minutes to an hour. So, the kindle unlimited plan sounded pretty darn good. Unlimited......although not every book is included. That new Bernard Cornwell book you've been dying to read? Not included. To be fair, I figured that hugely popular new releases wouldn't be included, and there are lots of titles to choose from. So, I was happily reading book after book, when I decided I'd rather spend the 10 bucks on books I choose. And figured that I would likely spend about the same amount over the course of a year.

There are free books too, lets make that clear. Usually new authors, or older books. I search through for hidden gems and find those occasionally. If you like romances (which I don't) there are literally hundreds of them. If you enjoy science fiction (which I do) there are plenty of those as well.

But I have wandered away from the rant I was building up to. I went online and cancelled the subscription. I realized I was reading a book from the unlimited plan when I received confirmation of the cancellation. I figured they'd let me finish it right? Nope. Not only that, but they removed ALL the books I had read on the unlimited plan. ALL OF THEM. Which kinda pissed me off, I mean, I had paid the subscription payment. And at the end of that I lost all the books I had read. Yeah, I might not have ever gone back and read them again. I do re-read books I enjoy. After 2 or 3 years, I'll go back and read a favorite again. So, although I enjoyed the books I read, having them all ripped away torqued my jaw.

July 1, 2018

Some nights we have twice the number of players on Wednesday, and other times we only have 5 or 6. There is a group of us that play on Sunday, but today there won't be enough of us to play. One is on a cruise, two are not able to come today, so playtime is cancelled for today. What I should do is go to the market where Munchkin is selling bread, and buy some home grown tomatoes and other veggies......but I probably won't, it's been so hot and I'd rather bake at home. Oh, yeah, and I should clean house today. Or maybe not :-)

My work week is four days ~ I think I've mentioned this before. And a few weeks ago I mentioned to one of my coworkers that if she wants to take a day off to ask me if I want to cover for her, as Ms. Loud (remember her??) always pipes up and claims the extra workday before I get a chance. So last Monday I received a message from her asking if I could work for her this last Friday. She is off next week and hoped to get an early start to it, so I agreed. So, instead of 4 days I had a 5 day workweek, which I don't normally have. It was rough getting up on Friday morning, especially since that is the one day a week Dr. S starts at 7am, so my alarm went off an hour earlier than normal......Friday was Dr S's last day of work before his two week vacation, so the number of patients kept climbing........and it was the last day of the month, so I had to "close" the month. But the truth is it was all easy except for the alarm part, which I fixed with coffee on my way out the door. And my paycheck had a nice little bonus to it.

Speaking of work, next week will be really strange, since we have the 4th holiday on Wednesday. My boss will be out on Friday the 6th, so I'm only working Tuesday and Thursday. Now, why didn't I think of taking those two days off? Drat!!

Tomorrow my online communication class begins. Because it is a 4 week class, I'm a bit concerned that it will be jam packed with a lot of work. It would be nice to discover I was wrong, but not counting on it. I think I also mentioned how few classes are being offered at UNM this summer. I suppose most of the under 25 students go home for the summer so there are fewer students to register for the classes offered, and I shouldn't be surprised at the lackluster offering during summer vacation time.

I purchased my ticket to visit the family & attend my high school reunion at the end of Sept. The ticket was a bargain, and my sister offered to come pick me up ~ no small offer since she lives in Comfort and the plane lands in Austin. That's probably a four hour long drive roundtrip. Yeah, she's pretty special. My favorite sister. My only sister, haha.